The Hollywood pack

Shouldn't a canine star be eligible for an Oscar?

A campaign to make Uggie – the Jack Russell that stars in the acclaimed film The Artist – a candidate for Oscar recognition is really not to be sniffed at. Why, apart from naked speciesism, should four-footed thespians be disbarred from consideration alongside their bipedal fellows?

If Uggie were allowed to trot off with a golden statuette between his teeth, he would be collecting it – as his acceptance speech would no doubt point out – not for himself alone, but for previous generations of canine stars who were unable to enjoy such rewards. There was no Lifetime Achievement gong for the extraordinary Rin Tin Tin, for instance, the shell-shocked Alsatian who was rescued at the Western Front during the First World War, and became a star of many silent films. (His gift was not limited to non-speaking roles, though: he was also a great hit on radio.) Nor are there pawprints on the Hollywood Walk of Fame from Asta, fox terrier star of The Thin Man and Bringing Up Baby, or from Toto, the actor who literally brings about the denouement in The Wizard of Oz. Surely it is time, then, for a dog to have his day?